Bird flu has New York authorities, if not residents, on watch
http://www.breitbart.com/news/2006/02/25/060225230705.dba66qo3.html
Feb 25 6:07 PM US/Eastern
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Amid the din of traffic and towering skyscrapers, hundreds of chickens, quail and other fowl, tied to cages stacked in a small Manhattan shop, cackle and await their fate as dinner. Asked about the bird flu, the owner smiles passively.
Eight EU countries have confirmed cases of the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain: Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Slovakia and Slovenia. The United States so far has been spared.
Still, the Big Apple, hit hard by the "Spanish flu" that killed 40,000 here in 1918, for months has been gearing up, increasing inspections, while New York state on Thursday unveiled a plan to respond to a pandemic.
Authorities have their eye on live poultry markets in this culturally diverse city of 8.2 million, where shoppers have a choice of more than 90 markets from the Bronx to Chinatown and Spanish Harlem.
The spread of the disease is worrying scientists and governments because of fears the virus could mutate into a form that is easily transmissible between humans, sparking a pandemic that could kill millions.
"We clean up more, we've got inspections, there's no problem, and no worry," said Aziz Jawari, a manager at the Delancey market which like others here is subject to surprise inspections.
On the Lower East Side, under the Williamsburg bridge and just a few steps from a local McDonalds, the market boasts in Spanish that it offers "pollos, gallinas y mas" ("chickens, hens and more"). An elderly Chinese lady selects her bird which is weighed on an old scale before it is slaughtered in the back room.
"These markets gather chicken from different states, so there is always a possibility that these chickens will be infected by chickens from different states," said Benjamin Lucio, director of Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine Avian Disease Program. So "it's a good place to survey and find out if there's avian influenza or not."
If H5N1 strikes here, "with H5N1, it's likely that we'll have a strong suspicion even before the samples arrive to us. People will be seeing chicken dying," he added.
And, Lucio noted: "New York state may not be the most vulnerable for this H5N1, because most of the poultry industry in NY state is indoors. We have very few flocks that are outdoors, in pastures."
City health officials in any event are planning a potential quarantine, hospital coordination and public information strategy just in case the virus hits and mutates, becoming communicable between humans.
"The cancellation of large public gatherings, as well as school closures, could potentially be recommended, if these measures are deemed necessary... Mass transit is a special concern, particularly informing riders about covering their mouth when they cough or sneeze, and staying home if they have cough with fever," Dr. Isaac Weisfuse, deputy commissioner of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, told the NYC Council Committees on Health and Public Safety on Avian and Pandemic Flu on November 17.
Some have begun to question whether there are enough hospital beds and medical supplies for all contingencies.
The Trust for America's Health, a health association, has said that while New York and Seattle are the best prepared US cities, there are widespread national disparities.
"We're very much behind," warned Jeff Levi, an expert on infectious disease at the Trust.
"We have such a decentralized system of public health, and with this administration in particular there tends to be a very heavy reliance on the state and local levels," he said.
But "the federal governement needs to step in and make sure that every health department is able to react and have similar policies. Each state is being expected to develop their own policies, when this is really a national challenge," Levi noted.
On the streets of New York, this is a quiet time. A few months back pharmacies were deluged with requests for preventative doses of Tamiflu, which they were supposed to turn down.
"When (H5N1) it started we used to have requests. Now, nobody comes" for the drug, said pharmacist Christine Chen, even though the appearance of the virus in western Europe was making front page news here.
Over at Delancey market, shoppers were still on the urban hunt for the perfect chicken.
"Here, I can see if it is good and looks healthy, and in the supermarket you don't know," explained Elis Collado. But if the virus hits, he said, he would stop buying live birds.
http://www.breitbart.com/news/2006/02/25/060225230705.dba66qo3.html
Feb 25 6:07 PM US/Eastern
Email this story
Amid the din of traffic and towering skyscrapers, hundreds of chickens, quail and other fowl, tied to cages stacked in a small Manhattan shop, cackle and await their fate as dinner. Asked about the bird flu, the owner smiles passively.
Eight EU countries have confirmed cases of the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain: Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Slovakia and Slovenia. The United States so far has been spared.
Still, the Big Apple, hit hard by the "Spanish flu" that killed 40,000 here in 1918, for months has been gearing up, increasing inspections, while New York state on Thursday unveiled a plan to respond to a pandemic.
Authorities have their eye on live poultry markets in this culturally diverse city of 8.2 million, where shoppers have a choice of more than 90 markets from the Bronx to Chinatown and Spanish Harlem.
The spread of the disease is worrying scientists and governments because of fears the virus could mutate into a form that is easily transmissible between humans, sparking a pandemic that could kill millions.
"We clean up more, we've got inspections, there's no problem, and no worry," said Aziz Jawari, a manager at the Delancey market which like others here is subject to surprise inspections.
On the Lower East Side, under the Williamsburg bridge and just a few steps from a local McDonalds, the market boasts in Spanish that it offers "pollos, gallinas y mas" ("chickens, hens and more"). An elderly Chinese lady selects her bird which is weighed on an old scale before it is slaughtered in the back room.
"These markets gather chicken from different states, so there is always a possibility that these chickens will be infected by chickens from different states," said Benjamin Lucio, director of Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine Avian Disease Program. So "it's a good place to survey and find out if there's avian influenza or not."
If H5N1 strikes here, "with H5N1, it's likely that we'll have a strong suspicion even before the samples arrive to us. People will be seeing chicken dying," he added.
And, Lucio noted: "New York state may not be the most vulnerable for this H5N1, because most of the poultry industry in NY state is indoors. We have very few flocks that are outdoors, in pastures."
City health officials in any event are planning a potential quarantine, hospital coordination and public information strategy just in case the virus hits and mutates, becoming communicable between humans.
"The cancellation of large public gatherings, as well as school closures, could potentially be recommended, if these measures are deemed necessary... Mass transit is a special concern, particularly informing riders about covering their mouth when they cough or sneeze, and staying home if they have cough with fever," Dr. Isaac Weisfuse, deputy commissioner of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, told the NYC Council Committees on Health and Public Safety on Avian and Pandemic Flu on November 17.
Some have begun to question whether there are enough hospital beds and medical supplies for all contingencies.
The Trust for America's Health, a health association, has said that while New York and Seattle are the best prepared US cities, there are widespread national disparities.
"We're very much behind," warned Jeff Levi, an expert on infectious disease at the Trust.
"We have such a decentralized system of public health, and with this administration in particular there tends to be a very heavy reliance on the state and local levels," he said.
But "the federal governement needs to step in and make sure that every health department is able to react and have similar policies. Each state is being expected to develop their own policies, when this is really a national challenge," Levi noted.
On the streets of New York, this is a quiet time. A few months back pharmacies were deluged with requests for preventative doses of Tamiflu, which they were supposed to turn down.
"When (H5N1) it started we used to have requests. Now, nobody comes" for the drug, said pharmacist Christine Chen, even though the appearance of the virus in western Europe was making front page news here.
Over at Delancey market, shoppers were still on the urban hunt for the perfect chicken.
"Here, I can see if it is good and looks healthy, and in the supermarket you don't know," explained Elis Collado. But if the virus hits, he said, he would stop buying live birds.